SAT Reading

How to answer SAT reading questions

By: Bani Randhawa

The SAT Reading section is dreaded even by the most avid readers, and for good reason- it just doesn’t feel natural! Here are some tips and tricks to help you get in a good rhythm of understanding, analyzing, and answering SAT Reading questions efficiently and correctly:

Know what works for you

The first tip is find the right strategy that works for you; what does this mean? There are two main strategies that people swear by on the SAT- some students think it’s really helpful to read the questions first, and then go back to read the passage, while other students only read the questions after reading the passage. There is no one “right” way- there are pros and cons to both, so the most important thing is that you find the method that works best for you. Try both while you’re practicing, and see which feels the most intuitive.

Learn the tricks

Secondly, make sure that you’re working smart, not hard. The nice thing about the SAT Reading section is that the answers to the questions have to be found in the passage that you’re given- if it requires any sort of deduction on your part, it can’t be the right answer. This is because the SAT is a standardized test, so it’s only fair that all students are given the same material to work from. Use this to your advantage!

Practice, practice, practice!

Finally, understand that the only way to get better is with practice. While this is generally true for every section of the SAT, it holds especially so for the Reading portion because these questions aren’t things you encounter in your daily coursework, unlike math problems. Make sure you’re taking advantage of the extensive practice question bases that are available both online and in practice books so that you have good exposure before your test day.